Outboard motor



June10,1930. v W;F A,BQEHNER 1,762,957

OUTBOARD MOTOR I Filed Dec. 17, 1927 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 IN VEN TOR.

Patented June 10, 1930 'NITED': sT 'rss WILLIAM I. A. IB'UEHNEB, OF MIAMI, FLORIDA, ASSIGNOR, BYT MESNE ABSIGNHENTQ I PATENT OFFICE TO OUTBOARD MOTORS CORPORATION, A. CORPORATION 01 MIOEIGAN OUTBOARD MOTOR Application. filed December 1?, 1927. Serial No. 840,868.

My present invention relates to improvements in outboard motors, and partlcularly to propeller drive and cooling water pump mechanism therefor. v v

- An object of this invention is'to provlde a mechanism which is simple and inexpensive to manufacture, isreadi'ly assembled and disassembled, and which will not be likely to be broken or otherwise rendered inoperative under ordinary conditions of use.

A further object resides in so constructing the parts that a constant supply ofcooling water will be maintained at all times during operation of the engine and under all conditions of use. v

Another object resides in-providing a pump mechanism which is readily fitted in place and is easily removed for installation of a new pump or replacement of any of the parts,

should this become necessary for any'reason.

Yet-another object is to provide for a slight yielding of the'propeller to thus avoid breakage of the propeller blades or damage to the driving and power connections, in case the propeller should strike a submerged log or other obstruction.

With the above and other objects in view, which will be apparent to those skilled in the art, this invention includes certain novel fea-' tures of construction and combinations of parts-which will be set forth in with the drawings.

' In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a view in side elevation showing my improved structure.

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal vertical sectional view through thestructure.

Fig. 3 is a horizontal sectional view taken substantially on line 3-3 .of Fig. 1.

a Fig. 4 is a view in perspective showing the 3 pump casing.

Fig.5 is a perspective view to-vbetter show v y present inventlon is adaptable for use withsubstantially all types of outboard motors as the same' are now constructed, and might be fitted as factory equipment, or can be manufactured to be sold separately and to be fitted individually to several of the present 60. types of motors as replacement for the present I f thilpropeller drive spring.

tion -'.adjusted to compensate for wear and to inpro eller drive and cooling water pump' mec anism thereof.

In the present instance I have illustrated my invention in connection with a standard form of drive shaft 1 and tubulardrive shaft housing 2, and it will be understood that these parts can be varied to take other standard forms and that any desired and suitabletytpe of motor unit and boat mounting there can be employed. I

A hous1ng-3 is adapted to have the propeller shaft 4 journalled therein and is provided with an opening 5 to receive the lower end of'drive shaft 1. This housing 3 serves as a propeller mechanism and pump housing, and this housing 3 is secured upon the tubular.- housing 2 by means of the connection housing 6. In horizontal section the. housings 3 and 6 are shaped to be substantially stream-lined, as best shown in Fig. 3, so that the'least possible obstruction to passage through the water will be offered. v Y

The lower part of housing 3 is cored out as at 7 to rovide a gear case and the propeller shaf t 4 is journalled in this space preferably in roller bearings 8 and 9 carrie y'theclosure cap 10 and adjustable bearing plug 11 respectively. Cap 10 closes the gear case to'exclude water and confine grease or other lubricant, and bearing plug 11 can be sure-a. proper mounting of shaft 4. Shaft 4 has the usual bevel or miter gear 12 keyed, pinned orv otherwise secured-thereon, and the usual bevel or miter gear 13 is pinned, keyed or otherwisesecured on the end of drive shaft 1 to be enmeshed with gear12.

The opening 5 is substantially circular in cross section and is of a diameter considerably larger-than would be required for shaft 1 this opening 5 being des gned to take and hold the pump case 14. 1 he pump case is made substantially tubularin form with the upper end open and the lower end closed but provided with a central opening 15 through which power shaft 1- passes. A suitable gland and stufling box structure is provided at 16 to give a packed joint around the shaft 1.

' A passageway 17 is provided between open-' ing 5 and the gear case opening 7 of sufiicient 10 size to permit free passage of the gear wheel I 13 when the same is innedor otherwise secured upon drive shaft 1, and yet a shoulder '18 is provided to support the pump casel4. An annular recess 19 is provided at the upper end of housing 3 around the opening 5 and a closure member 20 adapted to fit within the upper end of pump case 14 has a flange 21 which is received in this annular recess. The closure member 20 is provided with a bearing sleeve 22 adapted to fit up within the tubular housing 2 to form a journal bearing for power shaft 1, and a suitable gland sage 27 establishes communication between I the pump case opening 5 and water intake bore 24, and an opening 28 connects the lateral passage 27 with the interior of the pump case 14 near the bottom thereof. A key 29, or any other suitable form and type of loeating and securing means, will be provided to msure proper registry of opening 28 with passage 27 when the pump case is slipped into place.

A spiral water impeller 30 is keyed or other- -wise secured upon the. power shaft 1 within pump case 14 and this impellerscrew has the spiral vane 31 thereof inclined to -raise water 7 within the case 14 when the power shaft 1 is turned in the normal direction of rotation of'the motor power plant. Closure member 20 has a screw threaded opening 32 therethrough and a water supply pipe 33 connected in this opening 32 extends up through the tubular housing 2 or is otherwise led to'a point to be conveniently connected with the water jacketed cylinders of the motor.

In assembling the structure the impeller screw 31 is secured upon power shaft 1 after bearing portion 23 has been fitted in place, and pump case 14 is then placed over the spiral impeller to fit upon the closure member 20,'following which gear 13 is fitted and se-- cured in place. This entire assembly is then inserted through passage or openin 5 and when pump case 14 comes to a propefiiearing against shoulders 18 miter gear 13 will be in proper meshwith gear 12 and flange 21 will be received in recess 19. The tubular housing 2 has a flange 34 formed on the lower end thereof to fit within an annular recess 35"0n the lower side of connection housing 6, and the housings 3 and6 are provided with alined o emngs to receive screws 36, or other suiting is drawn down against and is securely clamped to the upper end of the housing 3. This connection and mounting closes the upper endof intake bore '24, secures pump case 14 and closure member 20 in place and clampsthe-parts securely upon the lower end of the tubular housing 2 by which this structure is supported and carried. If desired, a roller or all bearing can be provided at 37 around power shaft 1 adjacent the bearingv portion 23.

I With the parts assembled as set forth op-- eration of the motor will rotate power shaft, which will turn the' propeller through the ear connection; and, at the same'time the impeller spiral or screw 30 will be revolved in the pump case to lift water from the intake opening 28 and force this water up through the water supply tube-33 to properly cool the engine or motor. In disassembling the parts it is only necessary to remove the screws or other fastenings 36 and the various portions can then be readily taken apart in the reverse order of their assembly.

A splash plate 38 is castintegral with or is otherwise formed to be carried by the connection-housing 6 to be disposed to overlie the propeller, and with .this construction it will only be necessary to replace the connection housing 6, should the splash plate be broken, bent or otherwise rendered unsuitable for use. v

The propeller 39, which is of any desired design, type and pitch to suit the particular requirements of use, has the hub '40 thereof somewhat elongated and fitted to be capable of turning movement on the end of the propeller shaft 4. A nut 41, or other suitable fastening, is provided to hold the propeller in place, but does not clamp or secure the same against turning. A recess 42 is provided at the inner end of the hub 40 and at the inner end of the recess 42 a notch 43 is formed.- The propeller shaft 4 has a bore 'oropening 44 formed therein at a point spaced from the location of the notch 43 and a spiral spring 45 fitted around the propeller shaft within the recess 42 has its ends 46 and 47 bent outwardly and inwardly to fit the notch'43 and the opening 44. The spring is formed or wound to expand when twisted in a direction corresponding to the direction cl propeller shaft 4 and the material thereof is of a tension to normally be unaffected by the .ordinary working pressure upon pro-- peller 39. Thus, the propeller is connected with-the propeller shaft in a substantially fixed relation under normal working conditions; however, if the propeller strikes an obstruction or should become fouled, or the rotation thereof is otherwise interfered with the increased pressure upon the propeller will cause spring 45 to flex and yielding movement between the propeller and shaft 4 is thus. allowed toprevent breaking of the propeller,

stripping of the gears, or damage-to other parts of the structure. The usual strut 48 can be provided as an additional safeguard for the propeller. v

From the foregoing it will he seenthat I have provided a structure with which the propeller driving and pump mechanisms are very readily and expeditiously assembled and disassembled, with which a constant .supply of' cooling water is maintained under pressure during the operation of the motor, and further that the-parts are very effectively guarded and cushioned against the danger of breakage or damage.

While I have herein shown and described only certain specific embodiments, mountings and connections ofthe various features of my invention, it will-be appreciated that changes and variations can-be made, almost without number, to suit varying'conditions of installation and use without departing from the spirit and scope of my invention.

I claim 1. An outboard motor structure having a downwardly extending power shaft encased by a supporting housing, a connecting housing mounted on the supporting housing, a I pump and propeller housing removablyconnected to theconnecting housing and provided with an opening to receive a pump and an inlet passage communicating therewith,

and a pump mechanism to be assembled on the power shaft andvremovably fitted as a unit within the pump housing when the mounting housing is detached. 2. An outboard motor structure having a power shaft driven by a water cooled engine,

a power shaft housing, a pump and pro- Y peller' housing carried by ,said power shaft housing and provided with a cooling water inlet, said pump housing being provided with a pumpreceiving opening around the power shaft, a separate pump case removably fitted in said opening, an impeller connected on the power shaft to rotate within said pump case, and an outlet connection from the pump case to'the cooling jackets of the engine.

3. A water cooling system for outboard motors including a sectional casing forming a housing for a drive'shaft and also a housing for propeller drive gearing,. releasable means for securing said sections together, one of said sections having an opening surrounding said drive shaft, a separate pump casing removably fitted in said opening and held in position therem by the action of said releasable fastening means and the. sections J'e'cured together thereby, and an impeller fixed to said drive shaft and operating in saidpump case, there being an inlet to said nump caseand an outlet leading from the pump case to the water cooling system.

Intestimony whereof I hereunto afiix my signature.

. WILLIAM F. A. BUEHN R. 

